Transposing keyboard



Feb. 27, 1940. E. L. HANSON. JR

TRANSPOSING KEYBOARD Filed Dec. 6, 1938 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 ma M Feb. 27,1940. 'E. 1.. HANSON. JR 2,192,077

TRANSPOSING KEYBOARD I Filed Dec. 6, 1938 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Feb. 27,1940. E. HANSON. JR

TRANSPOSING KEYBOARD Filed Dec. 6, 1958 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 game/WMPatented Feb. 27, 1940 PATENT OFFICE TRANSPOSING KEYBOARD Elford L.Hanson, Jr., Athens, Ga.

Application December 6, 1938, Serial No. 244,279

3 Claims.

This invention relates to new and useful improvements in movablekeyboards adapted for use in keyboard instruments, whereby transpositionof music from one key to another may be accomplished by simplemechanical manipulation and more particularly the invention hasreference to a movable keyboard for pianos.

The underlying principle involving movement of a mechanism for producingtones, as the key and hammer lever assembly of a piano,v to the right orthe left for the purpose of transposing is known in the art, andinstruments using this principle have found widespread usage in suchfields as composing and various simplified teaching practices. Theinstruments in use, however, are cumbersome and have left much to bedesired in the way of simplicity of operation. Additionally, suchdevices have a wide field of use for persons having the ability to playin the single key of C and having difficulty adapting themselves to theother keys having complex signatures. The instrument is adjusted toproduce music in any desired key although the composition the operatorreads is written for fingering 1 in the key of C. It is well known thata large number of compositions contain modulations, that is, theshifting of the music from one key to another during the course of thecomposition,

and for that reason it is necessary for the movable keyboard to beshifted to the desired key in such an easy and smooth manner that littleor no interruption in playing would be perceptible. In the instrumentsof this type known in the prior art, too much time was required to shiftthe position of the keyboard during a performance involving modulation.I

The object of the present invention is to provide a keyboard that may beshifted silently and smoothly from one key to another by a simpleoperation involving the use of only one hand.

A further object of the invention is to reduce to a minimum the numberof moving parts necessary for the operation of a transposing keyboard.

The operation of the present keyboard is simple and the transposingfeatures thereof cannot affect the playing of one who wishes touse theinstrument, in conventional manner. constructed that music may bepitched to any one of the fifteen keys without causing complexity in theplaying or reading of music. With-instruments of this kind it is onlynecessary to learn to play in the key of C. While all music may beplayed by operative manipulation suitable to playing in this key, theactual tones produced will be those of the key in which the compositionwas intended to be played. Playing on an instrument as hereinafterdescribed renders unnecessary the ability to read music in the scales ofkeys other than that noted above, and. the only sharps or flats whichare used are those that are added It is so to the particular key inwhich the music is written.

In its preferred embodiment, the present invention contemplates a rigidframework supporting a number of key levers in excess of those normallyused which are mounted above the conventional hammer levers and madefree to move across such hammer levers by means of antifriction rollers.Themovement of said key lever system is actuated by an adjustment leverrigidly connected to the key lever framework and projecting through anopening in the panel board, which in turn is calibrated to correspond tothe keys in which the instrument may be played. Movement of the keylever system is accomplished by disengaging the adjustment lever from asuitable locking device and moving the same to the right or to the leftuntil in register with the notation corresponding to the desired key.The keyboard is then in position to play in that key in which the musicis to be played.

As may be seen from the drawings, the system is so designed that only aminimum portion of the keyboard system is moved. This naturallyfacilitates the movement thereof, which may be accomplished by only aslight pressure upon the adjustment lever. The framework supporting thekey lever is made sufiiciently rigid to elimiin extreme cases, renderthe instrument incapable of proper operation.

The invention will be fully understood upon consideration of thefollowing description of one specific embodiment thereof in connectionwith the attached drawings, wherein:

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary plan view of a piano .with the cabinet brokenaway to show the hammer levers and the relation of the key leversthereto;

Fig, 2 is a fragmentary section through the keyboard to show theadjustable support for the keyboard and the relation of key levers tohammer levers;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary elevation of the front panel of a piano showingthe means for positively retaining the keyboard in a desired position;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary elevation on line 4-4 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary section on line 5-5 of Fi 2;

Fig. 6 is a front elevation of a piano having the device of thisinvention incorporated therein; and

Fig. 7 is a top plan view of the piano illustrated in Fig. 6.

As seen in Fig. 1 the operative mechanism to cause the hammers to strikethe respective strings of the instrument comprises key levers l0 andhammer levers l, which are preferably weighted with lead at portions !2and 3, respectively, to balance the levers and equalize the actions ofblack and white keys. At any time when the instrument is in position forplaying in a given key, the relationship and operation of the mechanisms to cause strings to be struck are conventional.

Each hammer lever i rests on a wooden block, supporting felt pad M,which acts as a fulcrum to operate the striking mechanism indicatedgenerally at E5 when the head of the adjustable pin I6 is struck by thekey lever. Suitable pivot and guide pins ll and i8 are secured to fixedparts of the piano chassis is and work in felt lined slots 2!] and 2! inthe hammer lever. Felt shock absorbers are placed at those points wherepercussion effects might conceivably set up vibration in the chassis !9,as for example at 22.

The position. nature of adjustable pins IE are important to the specificembodiment of my invention here disclosed, but it will be clear as thedisclosure proceeds that in its broader aspects the inventioncontemplates other suitable means for accomplishing a similar result.

According to the present invention, the key levers are supported in anydesired position with respect to the hammer levers by a superstructurereadily movable with respect to chassis Id. In the illustratedembodiment the said superstructure comprises a series of three lJ-shapedpieces of cold rolled steel 23, 24 and 25, each securely fastened to asteel strip 26 at either end of the keyboard. The forward U-shaped piece23 rides on three anti-friction rollers ill and the rearward U-shapedpiece 25 rides on two similar rollers 28 and each of the said rollers ismounted on the chassis !9. To maintain the superstructure in properparallel relationship to the chassis, guide posts 29 and 39 are mountedon the said chassis at suitable intervals along the keyboard.

The entire operative assembly of key levers ID is mounted on the saidU-shaped pieces 24 and 25. Piece 25 supports a series of pivot pins 3!,each pin 3! fitting in a corresponding guide slot 32 in a key lever illwhich slot is preferably felt lined. A felt washer 33 about the base ofeach pin 3! serves as a fulcrum for the corresponding.

key lever Hi. It will be noted that the pivot pins 3! for white keylevers are somewhat further forward than the similar pins for black keylevers. Usually, a difference in position of about of an inch is properalthough this may vary with the instrument under consideration. Suchdifference in position of the pivot point is advisable in order toinsure uniform operation of the several key levers. Guide pins Moperating within guide slots 35 of the black key levers are secured toU-shaped piece 24. while similar guide pins 36 are secured to U-shapedpiece Guide slot 3'! and felt pad 38 are of more or less conventionalconstruction.

It will be readily understood that the superstructure can be shifted toright or left in order that the key levers I!) will be placed inposition to operate different hammer levers i l by striking the heads ofadjustable pins !ii. The heads of the said pins are preferably roundedand the under surface of each key lever is fitted with a wear'resistantplate 39 which may be of metal, a synthetic resinous material or thelike.

As shown in Fig. 4 the keyboard comprises a number of key levers inexcess of the number of hammer levers, namely H. In all instrumentsusing this type of keyboard it is necessary to include six extra keys onthe left of the keyboard and five on the right of the keyboard in orderto maintain the normal number of keys in view at all times. The keyswhich are not in position to contact adjustable pins H) are hidden fromview of the operator by a masking panel 5! and the key levers under thesaid masking panel are supported in position to move over the pins !6upon shifting of the superstructure by a track Ml secured to the pianochassis. The track 4B is of a length sufficient to accommodate the fullnumber of key levers in excess of the number of hammer levers. It willbe noted that under some conditions, the masking panel 5! will overliehalf of one key lever. However, the position of the hammer levers issuch that a key only partially exposed may be ignored by the personplaying the instrument.

For shifting the keyboard to a desired position and securing the same insuch position, I provide an adjusting lever of novel design. A strip ofcold pressed steel M is securely attached to the superstructure at thecentral portion thereof. Preferably the strip M is bolted to theunderside of U-shaped piece 25 and connected by an angle strip .2 to theU-shaped member 2 A U-shaped piece 50, of a width preferably less thanthat of the other members of the key supporting superstructure, extendsbetween the parts 26 at each end of the frame. As shown in Fig. 2, theconnection between strip 4! and angle strip 42 is by means of a boltpassing through piece 50, whereby substantial rigidity is imparted tothe superstructure. It will be noted that the piece 50 serves thefurther purpose of preventing the key levers from rising off theirrespective pivot pins. Suitable felt washers are inserted between metalto metal contacts wherever necessary to damp vibrations which wouldinterfere with the music produced by the instrument. The strip t! isextended upwardly behind the front panel of the instrument and is bentforward at its upper end to form an operating handle 43.

In the region of the front panel through which the handle 43 projects tothe exterior of the instrument there is affixed a plate 44 having ahorizontal slot 48 of a width to accommodate the handle 43. The saidhandle is equipped with a hingedly mounted catch member 45 adapted tooscillate within a groove in the upper surface of handle 43 and a springMi is inserted to force member 45 upwardly to engage one of the notches41 in the upper edge of slot 48. The notches 4! are suitably marked toindicate the key in which the instrument will play when the keys arestruck in the manner appropriate for playing the particular compositionin the key of C. Care should be exercised in constructing the adjustingfeatures of the superstructure to avoid interference with the hammerlevers I!. If necessary, the upper surfaces of the hammer levers may benotched to permit free movement of the superstructure and strip 4!without contacting the hammer levers.

It will be noted that the indicia on the plate 44 are suitable forsetting the instrument to play in any major key while using theconventional fingering for playing in the key of C major. t is to beunderstood that this is exemplary of the nature of the invention.

The operation of devices made in accordance with this invention will beobvious to those skilled in the art to which it appertains. By graspingthe handle 43 in a manner to depress catch 45 and exerting relativelylittle force the entire keyboard is quickly and easily shifted to adesired position.

In utilizing the advantages of this invention,

the compositions to be played are written in the key of C with suitableindication on the music as to the key in which it is intended to beplayed. The musician then sets the keyboard to the desired key and playsthe composition using the same fingering as that usual for the key of C.Many uses of the present invention will be immediately recognized bythose skilled in the art. For example, a musician would be aided intransposing a composition to a key other than that in which it iswritten. Thus in order to transpose music for use in playing anaccompaniment to a voice or musical instrument, the range of which doesnot correspond to the music as written, the accompanist may make properadjustment of the keyboard and proceed to play the music in a suitablekey with far less inconvenience than is normally involved in suchoperations.

There are many skilled musicians who are unable to transposesatisfactorily while playing from written music. It will be noted thatthe difference between any two adjacent positions indicated on the plate44 is a half tone. In order to transpose music from the key in which itis written to any desired key, it is only necessary to count the numberof half tones between the basic notes of the two keys and move thekeyboard a corresponding number of notches to right or left as the casemay be and play the music with the fingering appropriate to the key inwhich it is written.

While the invention is susceptible of various modifications and changes,I have herein described in detail the preferred embodiment, but it is tobe understood that I have not thereby intended to limit the invention tothe specific form disclosed but intend to cover all the modificationsfalling within the scope of a keyboard instrument, such as a pipe organ,electric organ, piano accordion, and a so-called steam piano.

I claim:

1. In a piano having a chassis, a plurality of tone producing stringsthereon, a plurality of horizontal hammer levers each adapted to causeone of said strings to sound also mounted on said chassis and a numberof horizontal key levers in a keyboard movable across said hammer leversin such manner that a major proportion of said key levers overlie saidhammer levers in parallel relation thereto, some of said key leversbeing shorter than the remainder thereof, there being one key leverabove each hammer lever having means on the underside thereof to makecontact with and depress said hammer lever upon depression of said keylever; a frame movable with respect to said chassis and a mountingtherefor comprising a pair of rigid horizontal bearing members eachhaving an upturned edge at each end thereof of a length substantiallygreater than that of the keyboard one disposed at the forward and one atthe rear side of said frame,

a pair of rigid straight members rigidly connecting the respectiveupturned ends of said bearing members'at the ends of the keyboard, alongitudinal rigid member parallel to and intermediate said bearingmembers rigidly connected at its ends to said straight members, guidepins on said rear bearing member and corresponding guide slots in saidkey levers, guide pins on said longitudinal member and correspondingslots in said shorter key levers, guide pins on said forward bearingmember and corresponding slots in said remainder of said key levers toretain said key levers on said frame in operative position, rollersmounted on said chassis to support said bearing members for movement inthe direction of the length of the keyboard, means to inhibit movementof said frame in a direction at right angles to the length of thekeyboard. and means to retain said frame in a desired position Withrespect to said chassis.

2. In a piano having a chassis, a plurality of tone producing stringsthereon, a plurality of horizontal hammer levers each adapted to causeone of said strings to sound also mounted on said chassis and a numberof horizontal key levers in a keyboard movable across said hammer leversin such manner that a major proportion of said key levers overlie saidhammer levers in parallel relation thereto, there being one key leverabove each hammer lever having means on the underside thereof to makecontact with and depress said hammer lever upon depression of said keylever; a frame movable with respect to said chassis and a mountingtherefor comprising a pair of rigid horizontal bearing members eachhaving an upturned edge at each end thereof of a length substantiallygreater than that of the keyboard one disposed at the forward and one atthe rear side of said frame, a pair ofrigid straight members rigidlyconnecting the respective upturned ends of said bearing members at theends of the keyboard, guide pins on said bearing members andcorresponding guide slots in said key levers to retain said key leverson said frame in operative position, rollers mounted on said chassis tosupport said bearing members for movement in the direction of the lengthof the keyboard, means to inhibit movement of said frame in a directionat right angles to the length of the keyboard and means to retain saidframe in a desired position with respect to said chassis.

3. In a keyboard instrument having a chassis, a plurality of toneproducing elements thereon, a plurality of horizontal operating leverseach adapted to cause one of said tone producing elements to sound alsomounted on said chassis and a number of horizontal key levers in akeyboard movable across said operating levers in such man ner that amajor proportion of said key levers overlie said operating levers inparallel relation thereto, there being one key lever above eachoperating lever having means on the underside thereof to make contactwith and depress said operating lever upon depression of said key lever;a frame movable with respect to said chassis and mounting thereforcomprising a pair of rigid horizontal bearing members each having anupturned edge at each end thereof of a length substantially greater thanthat of the keyboard one disposed at the forward and one at the rearside of said frame, a pair of rigid straight members rigidly connectingthe upturned ends of said bearing members at the respective ends of thekeyboard, guide pins on said bearing members and guide slots in said keylevers to retain said key levers on said frame in operative position,rollers mounted on said chassis to support said bearing members formovement in the direction of the length of the keyboard, means toinhibit movement of said frame in a direction at right angles to thelength of the keyboard and means to retain said frame in a desiredposition with respect to said chassis.

